Hard Rock International and Royal Caribbean International and Celebrity Cruises are partnering to offer reciprocal benefits to their gaming rewards program members, as follows:
- Loyalty members of Unity by Hard Rock will receive discounts on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity cruises and can qualify for invitation-only cruises In addition, top-tier loyalty members can receive a complimentary cruise on select ships once a year.
- Royal Caribbean Club Royale and Celebrity Blue Chip members will receive discounts and other rewards at participating Hard Rock locations. Also, top-tier members will receive a complimentary trip to select Hard Rock hotels and casinos annually.
Jeff Hook, executive vice president and chief marketing officer at Seminole Hard Rock Support Services., said the cruise line partnerships are in response to guests’ requests. He said, “Our research showed that over 60 percent of our customers are likely to cruise in the next two years, and Royal Caribbean and Celebrity Cruises were the top two preferred cruise lines by our guests. And because such a big part of our business, especially the casino world, is down here in Florida, where a tremendous number of folks are taking cruises, it’s especially beneficial.”
Hook noted Hard Rock and the cruise lines actually market to the same, highly valuable customer demographic. He said, “Despite the fact that only about 6 percent of our total venues around the world are actual casinos, it’s a substantial part of our income because people are spending pretty decent money in the casinos. And these cruise lines, they’re actually generating a pretty decent amount of money from their casinos, as well. So, you have folks who obviously have discretionary income and discretionary time, and folks who, in some cases, are retired and who enjoy gaming.”
Hard Rock’s cruise line partnership is the company’s first, but not the industry’s. Norwegian Cruise Line already partners with the Caesars Rewards program.
